More and more retailers seem to have novelty lighters on their shelves. These are the lighters that are made to look like other things. Perhaps you’ve seen them. Unfortunately, they often look like shiny, plastic toys and they become of huge interest to curious children.

In the hands of a child a lighter can be more dangerous than a loaded revolver. Seriously. A child can not only burn themselves, but they can start a fire that takes out an entire home, possibly killing everyone inside. Or, worse yet, when the child lives in an apartment or condominium building, every person living there is in danger.

A company called the Idea Bank has produced a video public service announcement that helps raise awareness to the novelty lighter issue. It’s not bad. As a matter of fact, it is very poignant. However, they are failing at getting this PSA to viral levels. It is available to view or download at their website. Fire departments, media outlets and other interested parties can get it from the web site. I ask, “Why not through social media outlets as well?”

I’ve looked for it, but cannot find it at YouTube, Google Videos, or Kyte.tv or through many of the other widely used distribution media for user generated content. Think about how well people could share this. I could have posted a viewable version on this very blog without the need to download it to my PC, upload it to my server, and serve it to you using my paid bandwidth. Services exist so that this is not necessary. Plus, I don’t know that I have the authority to post it myself to YouTube, so I’m a bit hesitant to do so.

The only way that Idea Bank has provided on their site for me to feed the PSA to you is through this banner:

Please visit the site and view the PSA to learn a bit more. And, if you see novelty lighters on the shelves at your local retailer — raise a stink. Tell them how they are putting themselves and others at risk through the sale of these products. Oh, they will likely tell you that these are “only sold to adults.” So what? Adults take them home and put them on a table. Children find a “new toy” and begin to play. It only takes a few moments for them to discover they can create a flame.

Looks harmless, doesn’t it?

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